Tell The Truth And Shame The Devil

Lying to ourselves is more deeply ingrained than lying to others. Fyodor Dostoyevsky

About a year ago I saw "The Invention of Lying". Interesting concept, it was. Lying is such a charged, hurtful, convenient notion. The reality is people lie because they would rather NOT deal with the repercussions of being honest and telling the truth. Being honest and telling the truth takes courage. Might I add it takes courage to dish out honesty AND to receive it. As much as I hate being on the receiving end of lies, and would argue that lying/omitting information and embellishing are the exception and not the rule in my life - I find that when I make a concerted effort to be 100% honest, I am constantly coming up against the "perfect" opportunity to escape dealing with any number of things by just....lying.

Lying permeates every single nook, cranny, layer, sphere and prism of modern day culture. Some will tell you that truth is a very subjective thing. Existentialists will offer that "we all have our own truth". However, the fall out, the repercussions, aren't limited to the lie-teller. I am of the opinion that lying is nothing more than actualized selfishness. If you don't beleive me, I dare you to try to make it through the day without telling a single lie, embellishment or non-committal answer. In other words, tell the unmitigated, unadulterated truth. It is both terrifying and freeing. If we all lived responsibly and authentically there would be much less to apologize for, ask forgiveness for and LIE about. Knowing the truth is inevitable, that it will be known, has behavior modifying properties. We all know some people would rather you lie to them than tell them the truth. That STILL doesn't excuse you from your responsibility to live...responsibly. Just think about it - what if we couldn't count on ANYONE to be true to their word. What is we all walked around wielding our personal truths about without any concern for the world we live in? Just because you lie about something doesn't erase its existence or reality.

A few years back I was visting Uganda. While I was there I was the guest of a very successful, well-to -do leading attorney in the country. I wined and dined with the creme de la creme of Ugandan society. It was clear that my host lived well above the socioeconomic level of the average Ugandan. In spite of that fact, I noticed he would frequently stop and buy SIM cards for his cell phone. His house boy would be sent to pick up a SIM card. His secretary would go fetch a SIM card. I thought it was odd. Here in America most people receive a bill for their past usage. Those who don't typically pay by use is a result of bad credit, etc. This man clearly could afford to pay his bills - I asked why was he a man of means doing as the "commoners"? His response was that "Americans live in a different paradigm. You all are extended credit with the assumption that you will keep your word and pay what is owed. There is a level of faith, a level of trust extended to you by businesses in America. In Uganda if you want something, you have to pay for it first, even electricity". He later added that if credit were extended in Uganda, in no time at all the economy would come crashing down. Ironic, we see what happened to the USA as credit lines were extended to those who could and could not be trusted. American culture on a whole is built on the assumption of honesty. Even in our court system there is the presumption of innocence. We are expected to speak with integrity, live with integrity and make commitments with integrity. Our economic, social and moral foundation is based on the supposition of integrity.

The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is. Winston Churchill

I have challenged myself to live responsibly, authentically and honestly. I can't see doing one or two of those three, it must be all. Our lives, our families, our communities and our world would be a better place if we all challenged ourselves to do the same. Tell the truth and shame the devil - who's in?